1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a software robot having a genetic code, and more particularly to a method for transmitting a software robot message.
2. Description of the Related Art
With the prolific development of wired/wireless communication, a vast array of multimedia applications are being provided using various contents in virtual space environments. Further, due to the trend of personalization/differentiation, a user can vary avatars and contents to more uniquely express him/herself. However, although there are a large number of expressions, only a basic combination of preset avatars and contents can be used. Therefore, it is impossible to completely satisfy the user's desires.
Accordingly, an artificial life has been invented, which is able to behave based on its own motivation, emotion, interaction, and selection of actions. The artificial life has a genetic code. A software robot (hereinafter sobot) having a genetic code is an example of the artificial life. The sobot can change its internal state including its internal motivation, homeostasis and emotional state, through interaction between an assigned genetic code and an input of the owner, and can express various behavior patterns according to the change. The genetic code refers to a robot genome composed of a plurality of artificial chromosomes, which include essential element-related genes, internal state-related genes and behavior selection-related genes. The essential element-related genes are composed of parameters of essential elements for internal states, changes in each internal state and external behavior expression. The internal state-related genes are composed of parameters for various external stimulations and the internal states corresponding to the external stimulations. The behavior selection-related genes are composed of parameters for various expression behaviors and the internal states corresponding to the expression behaviors.
There are more than 1000 genetic parameters that can be set as different values depending on each sobot. The behavior of a sobot is determined based on the values of genetic parameters of genetic codes, changes in internal states according to external stimulation and behavior according to the changed internal states, so that a unique sobot can be created. An algorithm which is related to changes in internal states depending on genetic codes and external stimulation, and the selection of an expression behavior according to an internal state is disclosed in Korean Patent Application Laid-open No. 10-2004-78322 of Jong Hwan Kim on Sep. 10, 2004 (entitled “Virtual Life System And Software System For Education Using The Same”), the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. According to such features, unlike conventional avatars expressing only fixed behaviors specified by the user, the sobot expresses behaviors according to interaction between multiple factors, such as the internal states of the sobot, various environmental factors of virtual space and user input. Therefore, the user can select his/her own unique artificial life.
These sobot features may also be effective in revealing the user's own personality. Accordingly, if the user can utilize his/her own sobot when communicating with other people, the user can better understand him/herself, and the contents of the communication may increase. Thus, it may be desirable to use a sobot, for example, in a method for transmitting/receiving messages. However, because the sobot is output in the form of a moving picture or a three-dimensional (3D) image in order to express various reactions instead of a fixed image, communication using a sobot is problematic due to the increased capacity of a message to be transmitted/received. Moreover, since various backgrounds and music files can be attached to the message, the overall capacity of the message inevitably becomes much larger.